Test drive by Renault Fluence since 2009 sedan

Renault Fluence: Taxi Dream

To keep up with the times the goal that all automakers set for themselves, conducting an update of a particular model. And Renault Fluence is no exception.


First of all, the front of the Renault Fluence changed. Remember the new generation Clio model shown on the auto show in Paris? Then many were upset, because this pretty compact will not be supplied to our country. However, if you are close to the style created by Lawrence Van Den Aker, now you have an outlet: Fluence has been updated in a very similar way. Of course, it will not be possible to confuse two models, but such a muzzle is very to the face. And if the previous Renault Fluence had a neutral appearance rather, now the car has transformed. He would have other rear lights ...


The presentation of the first Renault Fluence was held in 2009 at the Frankfurt Auto Show. The model replaced Megane in the sedan back, and the creators did not hide that the car was designed primarily in developing markets, including Russia. In our country, the car won 4 position in the segment C and was dispersed by a circulation of 36 thousand copies.

In the interior, changes are similar. Although at first glance it seems that there is not much new, after launching the engine, you notice that large dials with arrows on the dashboard gave way to the new electronic panel. However, the main innovation, of course, was the emergence of a multimedia R-Link system. Thanks to her, the driver can not only track the route through the TomTom navigation system with the function of controlling the road situation, but also connect any mobile devices, give voice commands and use various applications. In fact, this is a small tablet computer. It is convenient to use the R-Link system, although at first you intuitively confuse the navigation control with a volume control.


The salon has a new multimedia system R-Link and a two-zone climate control.

In technical terms from the predecessor, the modernized Renault Fluence is characterized by the presence of a new 1.6-liter engine with a capacity of 114 hp. and a moment of 155 Nm, paired with a variator of the X-Tronic CVT with a gearbox. How justified is this combination?


New 1.6-liter 114-horsepower engine for 8 hp It is stronger than the predecessor that has a larger torque (155 N ∙ m at 4000 rpm instead of 145 N ∙ m at 4250 rpm). Such results were achieved using the system of changes in gas distribution on intake and exhaust valves, as well as the design of the new intake manifold, which reduces aerodynamic losses when air supply to the cylinders. In addition, the new aluminum block of cylinders for 24 kg is lighter than the previous cast iron.

Our route began in the very center of Istanbul. The movement here could easily compete with any Russian city of the Millionnik the same chaotic restructuring, wide roads and traffic jams. This rhythm is a real Fluence element with a variator! And let the acceleration from a place to hundreds take 11.9 seconds, people living in large cities know: the main thing on the road from work to the house is not to lose his nerves, and this in Fluence is fine. Add a good smoothness to this, and the trip will turn into a real sedative after a long work day. But now, the historical center is replaced by business quarters, our path runs along the bridge over the Bosphorus Strait and leads us out of town along the broadband high-speed line. On it, the updated Fluence also holds well, only a little annoying the engine of the engine at high speeds. District houses of local residents are replacing expensive restaurants and fashionable hotels. We are in the Turkish village.

The landscape begins to greatly resemble Russian reality. And the point is not even a population living more modestly than in Istanbul, but in familiar tubercles and bumps that appear, you only need to turn off the main route. Renault Fluence is traditionally good due to its soft suspension, which remained unchanged (MacPherson with triangular levers in front, and behind the beam). Fluence calmly slips small irregularities and more pits. You do not notice how in the direct indications of the speedometer they begin to approach 80-90 km/h, despite the road on which local legislation orders to go no longer than 30 km/h.

The flip side of this comfort is controllability. Although the Fluence rolls in corners and keep on an acceptable level, I do not want to light on a winding highway at all. At speed, the steering wheel begins to pour in weight, but there is clearly not enough information and feedback. However, Renault is not building illusions and do not try to position Fluence as a sports model.

But you know why Renault Fluence suits best? To work in a taxi! And the point is not even in the new fashion enamel of the ivory, so the car begins to resemble the coloring of this mode of transport somewhere in Germany. The fact is that going to Renault Fluence as a passenger is even more pleasant than driving. Judge for yourself: the distance at the elbow level is 1480 mm in front and 1475 behind, and having moved the front seat to the maximum back, you do not risk turning the rear passenger in jelly, quite the opposite. The volume of the trunk is 530 liters. But we are talking about a car that nominally refers to the C-class! And do not grin contemptuously: let some charged prior in the race win the race from a traffic light, and the owner of a ten-year-old Mercedes will consider this car wrong. It is important that the other does not burn the pots of pots. Therefore, Renault Fluence is the choice of pragmatics, which is more important than the level of comfort for adequate money. He would also be a diesel engine ... But he will not be in Russia because of low demand.
Where will the updated Fluence be popular? Surely, in cities with a population of 100 to 500 thousand inhabitants. Broken roads and the lack of metropolitan snobbery will play a role. Its cost may be pushed away from the purchase of flime in the province, however, Renault decided to practically not change prices. In particular, the base car in the Authentique configuration, equipped with an old 1.6-liter engine (106 hp) and a mechanical gearbox, will cost 625,000 rubles. For this money, the buyer receives a package of preparations for Russian conditions, which includes the adaptation of the engine to cold starting, an enhanced suspension and anti -gravel cover of the body of the body, frontal airbags, the ABS system and the on -board computer. For a surcharge of 6000 rubles, you can get heated front seats.


According to the French, the buyer of this car is a middle-class representative, a manager aged 37-42, who wants to purchase a practical means of transportation from work to the house. It is understood that most of the trips will take place in urban conditions.

The list of options included, starting with the Confort version, is replenished with fog lights and daytime running lights, two front side airbags, a more advanced audio system, folding rear seats in relation to 2/3, and the installation of climate control becomes possible for surcharge. For a car with a new 1.6-liter engine (114 hp), they will be asked from 703,600 rubles, and it will not be possible to order it with the mechanics, only a version with a unavailable variator is available.

Prices for the Expression version start at 696,600 rubles. A dual-zone climate control with separate air ducts for rear passengers, inflatable safety curtains, rain sensor, and a surcharge of 19,500 rubles can also be included here, you can get a system of stabilization of exchange rate stability. Finally, the cost of the Dynamique version starts at 776,600 rubles. This modification differs, first of all, with additional chips, including other seats, cruise control, automatic parking brake, parking sensors, Follow Me Home Follow function and sunscreen on the rear windows.

Sales of the updated Renault Fluence in the Russian market will begin on April 1. At first, Turkish production cars will be supplied to us, but then the release of the restyled version of the sedan will be commissioned on the Moscow autoframos. Competitors of the model have long been known. For example, prices for Skoda Octavia begin at a lower mark of 574,000 rubles, but for this money the buyer receives a car with a 1.4-liter 80-horsepower engine. A more comparable version with a 1.6-liter 102-horsepower engine costs already 624,000 rubles. However, Renault Fluence has really dangerous rivals two PEUGEOT 408 and Ford Focus. Buying the first will cost the amount of 569,000 rubles, and this car is already equipped with a 1.6-liter 110-horsepower engine (and it is also more than 81 mm Fluence). As for the focus, it is traditionally included in the list of Russian bestseller, and therefore Renault Fluence will have to compete in any case. The cost of the sedan in the basic version starts from 542,000 rubles, but the prices for comparable modification with a 1.6-liter 106-horsepower engine start from 632,500 rubles.
 



City of contrasts
We are not going to pour quotes from the film a diamond hand, but we note: if you want to walk in the footsteps of Semyon Semenovich Gorbunkov, then you do not need to Istanbul. The thing is that the masterpiece of Soviet cinema was shot in Baku and Sochi, and therefore you will not find familiar places from the film.

But there are really many contrasts in Istanbul. This is largely due to its location: the city is divided into Asian and European parts. Many locals literally live on one continent, and go to work on another. The message is provided by both the Bosphorus and Bay of the Golden Horn of ferries and bridges that run through the Strait. The highest of them was built in 1973 by Japanese and German architects. The length of the bridge is 1560 meters, the length of the main span is 1074 meters, the width is 33 meters, the height of the supports is 165 meters above the water. From the carriageway to the surface of the water 64 meters. When you are under such a design, it seems that only the supports of the bridge do not allow two continents to part, connecting them as giant brackets.

However, the most famous attraction of Istanbul, of course, is not a bridge over the Bosphorus, but the Cathedral of St. Sophia, also known as the Aya-Sophia mosque. The temple was built in the city, which was then called Constantinople, back in the 4th century A.D. Under the emperor Konstantin. However, as modern studies show, this place was revered even in the days of ancient paganism. Over its history, the temple was destroyed several times and rebuilt due to earthquakes, and also suffered greatly during the campaigns of the crusaders. But indeed, the cathedral has changed beyond recognition after the capture of Constantinople by the Sosmans at the end of the 15th century. Sultan Mehmed II commanded to turn the Christian temple into a mosque and attach four minarets to it. Unique frescoes were smeared with plaster, however, according to scientists, this is what allowed them to be preserved in its original form until today. Among other things, the Aya-Sofia complex will be interesting to Russian tourists that it was here that Princess Olga was once baptized, and therefore the former Cathedral of St. Sophia in a sense of the source of Christianity in Russia.

Opposite Aya-Sofia is another cult place of the Sultananmet mosque or a blue mosque. Its construction began in 1609 during the reign of the Sultan Ahmed I. At that time, for forty years, Turkey did not erect a single large mosque, and it was decided to fix this defect. According to legend, the Sultan ordered to build a mosque with gold minaretes, but the architect accepted the word gold, which sounds in Turkish as Altyn, for the number six (Alta) and erected six minarets. This place received the name of the blue mosque thanks to the large number of blue ceramics used in the decorations of the interior, as well as the light, which, penetrating through the windows, receives a special shade.

Next to two mosques, which at the first glance is very easy to confuse, is another unique structure hidden from the views of passers-by because of their underground location. We are talking about the Basilica tank there a reserve of drinking water, which was supplied along the water supply and aquates from sources located near the city. The vaulted ceiling of the tank support 336 columns of eight -meter height. The construction of the reservoir began already in Christian times, and therefore columns from ancient temples were taken to build the building. The columns differ in shape, and the column with the head of the gorgon jellyfish is especially distinguished, located at the base. According to scientists, an inverted position may be associated with the fact that believers wanted to once again express their attitude to the pagan pantheon. But perhaps people were simply afraid to look into the eyes of an ancient monster who knows how to turn a person into stone. In addition to columns and water, the tank is also interesting because they shot the episode of the film about James Bond from Russia with love.

Being in the center of Istanbul, you least think that you are in a country, at least politically one to the east. If it were not for the style of people's clothing on the streets and the minarets of numerous mosques, you can easily think that you are somewhere in the south of France, in Spain or in Italy. But as you move to the outskirts, the city opens its other, truly eastern face dynamic and bright, noisy and eclectic, but this is no less interesting.

The automobile traffic on the streets of Istanbul is distinguished by chaos, but in many ways it looks like existing in Russian cities. Despite the disorder and constant sound of the cracons, the drivers are non -aggressive and inferior if you really need to turn. In general, it is not scary to drive in Istanbul, however, if you rent a car, remember: pedestrians here cross the street in completely unexpected places that are not intended for this.

Timothy Isaev
Photo by the author and Renault
 

Source: Auto.mail.ru